Is Your Boiler Burning Used Motor Oil?
March 18, 2016 — Lawsuits over adulterated heating oil get a new life.
A New York state appeals court has revived two lawsuits accusing Hess Corp. and Castle Oil Corp. of cheating thousands of residential and commercial customers by blending waste oil into higher-grade heating oil, Reuters reports. Waste products, such as used motor oil and sludge from commercial boilers, burn inefficiently and can release dangerous amounts of toxic pollutants into the atmosphere.
The Appellate Division in Manhattan ruled unanimously that a lower court judge was wrong in 2014 to dismiss claims that the defendants diluted their heating oil supplies from 2009 to 2013. The original suit was filed on behalf of thousands of building owners in New York City, Westchester County and Long Island.
The lawsuits arose from an investigation begun in 2011 by the law firm Wachtel Missry, which later involved state and federal authorities.